| Chores is a band without pretensions. It's just four people who love music and hate work.
To balance the realities of the inevitable disappointments of life in their late twenties, Lou Thomas (git/vox), Jada Pierce (git/vox), Eric Mellor (bass/backing vox) and Matthew White (drums) temporarily stopped bitching and started communicating their frustrations through wild instrumentation in a cramped, dank basement, a few times a week. Inspired by the sonic landscapes of Oneida and Yo La Tengo, and the lyrical poetics of Jonathan Richman and Kristin Hersh, Chores writes their songs as a group, coupling noisy guitar riffs with more straightforward rock sensibilities. |
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PRESS! "It’s too bad the Portland band hasn’t appeared on any What’s Up, Stumptown? comps—Shaky Hands fans would probably have a new crush. " -Willamette Week read the entire article here. "While pop acts like the Shins hog all the glory and roll playfully upon waterbeds filled with Cristal, bands like Chores are why Portland pop music is on the map. Life Is Hard, the debut EP from Chores is an absolutely flawless gathering of pop songs that work in every setting—from the basement, to the stage, to that waterbed full of imported champagne—from a band that has perfected their craft." -Portland Mercury read the entire article here. "...Chores currently makes the kind of music a pre-Warner Sub Pop might happily have pressed, if not Merge or Matador back in the day." -Crawdaddy read the entire article here. "Chores perfectly encapsulates the American spirit as the guitars riff and Pierce frantically shouts, 'I want to buy this! / Don't need it now. / I want to buy this!' ...like a cool mix of Deerhoof and Sleater-Kinney." -the California Aggie read the entire article here. "...Pierce, Thomas, bassist Eric Mellor, and drummer Matthew White got to work crafting the infectious, slow-churning songs found on their debut EP, "Life is Hard." The EP's title fits perfectly with the tongue-in-cheek attitude Chores takes to its plight as a band made up of people who, at Chores' inception, were on the brink of feeling too old to keep playing in bands, and deeply entrenched in a world of day jobs and landlords." -Oregon Daily Emerald read the entire article here. "The band's first EP, "Life Is Hard," is a bruising, bluesy affair reminiscent of the bar-band intrigues of the Hold Steady and the sunburned punk of X. The interplay of Pierce's fuzzy rhythm guitar lines with Thomas' ringing lead work is wonderful enough on its own, but it is augmented in often surprising ways by the snaky work of bassist Eric Mellor." (ed. note - both Pierce and Thomas play lead) -the Oregonian read the entire article here. "The five tracks off the EP Chores is releasing tonight, Life Is Hard, sound terrific, fueled by slashing guitar solos, and fierce, committed vocals..." -the Portland Mercury read the entire article here. "Chores’ complete lack of pretension is downright charming..." -the Willamette Week read the entire article here. "Hatred level with Chores? Next to zero. Like valkyries swooping in from Portland, my fog lifts with their strange brew - I hear everyone from Creedence to Talking Heads to King Missle (just a little) and it makes me perk up more than any band I've seen here in awhile. Not since that Kled set last month, if you want me to audit my serotonin levels. It's fog lifting and really goddamned impressive." -the Blue Moon Cafe, Seattle read the entire article here. | |